facility Unless part of a proper
name, avoid this word when possible, especially as a
bureaucratic euphemism for building. Be more
specific by naming or describing individual facilities, such
as base, building, factory, hotel, jail, laboratory,
museum, office, plant, restroom, stadium, warehouse or
even toilet: The council appointed her director
of the new jail [not facility, or worse,
jail facility].

facsimile, fax As a noun,
verb or adjective, fax may be used in all
references, including first. Don't capitalize as
FAX; the word fax is neither an acronym nor
a proper noun. See reproduce, telephone numbers.

fact Use this
word only if a statement can be verified as accurate, true or
correct, not for matters of judgment. Also, a true
fact is redundant; drop true. See
factoid below.

When possible, avoid using the phrase the fact that.
Omit needless words: since or because, not
because of the fact that; even, though,
despite or although, not despite the fact
that; please note, remind you or tell
you, not call your attention to the fact that;
we were unaware that (or did not know that)
instead of we were unaware of the fact that; her
success instead of the fact that she had
succeeded; and ourarrival, not
the fact that we had arrived. See in fact.

factoid
Confusing. A factoid is a single possibly
interesting "fact" that's either unverified and
unconfirmed or trivial and useless. To be clear, consider
using facts or statistics when writing
about something significant and trivia or
useless facts when writing about something
that's not. See fact above.

factor
Hackneyed if used to mean a thing to be considered, an event
or action. Instead, use influence, cause, reason, part,
fact, feature, condition or circumstances. Or
be specific and name the specific factor that contributed to
a particular result.

Fahrenheit In texts, on first
reference use numerals and spell out degrees. Also, spell out
and capitalize Fahrenheit: The mercury hit 86
degrees Fahrenheit. On later reference if the context is
clear, the degrees may be dropped and the abbreviation for
Fahrenheit used: The mercury hit 86 F yesterday
(space before and no period after the F). See
temperatures.

fairly
Vague adverb meaning "more than a little but much less
than very." Huh? Eliminate that word, be more precise,
or rethink what you're writing about: Change fairly
hot to hot or warm--or be specific:
78 degrees.

family A
singular noun, family takes singular verbs. To make
it possessive, add apostrophe s: The
family's fortune is tied up in real estate. The
family's gifts are in the closet. Also an adjective:
The family fortune is tied up in real estate (family
is modifying the noun fortune). The family gifts are in
the closet. Also see collective nouns.

family,
genus, species In scientific or biological names
for plants or animals, capitalize the broad Latin family name
and generic Latin genus name. But lowercase the specific
species name: Homo sapiens, Tyrannosaurus rex.
Italicize the genus and species names when possible. See
fish; species; taxonomy.

family
names Capitalize family names like dad,
mother, son and grandmother only when they are
before the name of a person or when they substitute for the
name of a person: He sent an email message to Aunt
Larson. She sent an email message to Father. She sent an
email message to her dad. "Would you hand me the
spatula, Son?" Also see Dad and Mom.

Also, when making family names plural, don't change their
spelling. And don't add an apostrophe. Simply add
es to most proper names ending in es or
z: the Gonzalezes, the Jameses, the
Edwardses. And add s to other proper names,
including most proper names ending in y even if a
consonant comes before it: the Clintons, the Kerrys,
not the Kerries. When making a plural family name
possessive, put an apostrophe after the final s:
the Jameses' car, the Clintons' home, the
Abernathys' holiday greeting (but Bob
Abernathy's holiday greeting). See plurals, possessives.

FAQ Abbreviation
of plural frequently asked questions; it doesn't
end with a redundant s. Except in headings, spell it
out on first reference; FAQ is fine for later
references.

farther,
further Often misused or confused. Farther
suggests measurable physical distance: The plant was
farther away than they thought. Memory aide: The
far in farther refers to physical distance.

As an adjective, further means "more" or
"additional" in time, degree, amount or quantity:
She had further news. But consider using simpler
more instead. Further is also used as an
adverb meaning "in addition" or
"moreover." As a verb, further means to
"advance or promote": She worked to further his
career. But consider using simpler help.

fast, fastlyFast is both an adjective meaning "quick"
to modify a noun or pronoun and an adverb meaning
"quickly" to modify a verb, adjective or other
adverb: She has a fast car, and she likes to drive
fast. Don't use fastly as the adverb, as in
drive fastly.

fatal,
fateful Sometimes confused adjectives. Use
fatal to describe something that will cause or has
caused death or disaster: a fatal disease, a fatal
mistake, a fatal flaw. Use fateful to describe
something that will have or has had a momentous consequence
or decisive significance: a fateful decision.

faze, phase
Commonly confused. Faze is a verb meaning "to
confuse or disturb someone." As a verb, phase
means "to do something gradually, in stages." As a
noun, a phase is "one part of a process in
which something develops or changes."

feasible Sometimes misspelled as
feasable. Means "capable of being done or
achieved, or capable of being used or handled to good
effect." Consider using less ambiguous can be
done or can be achieved. If you mean
"reasonable or likely," use possible, likely to
work, workable or probable instead.

fecal coliform
bacteria A group of organisms common to the
intestinal tracts of people and animals. Its presence in
water is an indicator of pollution.

federal
Use a capital letter for corporate or governmental bodies
that include the word as part of their formal names:
Federal Express, the Federal Trade Commission.

Lowercase when used as an adjective: federal aid, federal
government, federal judge.

Always lowercase the phrase federal courts. Use the
proper name of the court on first reference.

feel, think Not
interchangeable. If ideas are based on feelings or emotions,
use feel. But if ideas are based on perception,
memory and judgment, use think (or
believe). See I. Also see bad, badly for feel
badly.

female,
male Best used as adjectives, if necessary to
refer to the sex of a person or occupational title. For
nouns, use woman, man, girl and boy
instead. Female and male are OK as nouns
when writing about animals, when it's not known if a
person is an adult or a child, and when writing about a group
that includes both adults and children. See sex, sexism.

ferryboat One word.
Ferry is acceptable as both a noun and a verb.
Plural is ferries.

fewer, lessFewer (or few) stresses number, and
less stresses degree or quantity. Use fewer
for plural nouns and individual items that can be counted,
less for singular nouns and a bulk, amount, sum,
period of time or idea that is measured in other ways:
Fewer than 10 applicants called. I had less than $50 in
my pocket. Fewer dollars, less money. Less food, fewer
calories. See amount, number; less than, under.

few in
number Redundant. Drop in number. Or
replace with infrequent, limited, meager, not many, rare,
scant, scarce, sparce or uncommon.

(the) field
of If someone works in a field of wheat or corn,
wonderful! We need family farmers. But if someone works in
the field of accounting or journalism, simplify and
drop the field of as redundant and unnecessary.
The area of is also unnecessary. See area.

finalize Pompous and often
misused. Use only to mean "make final" or "put
into final final form." Otherwise, simplify. Replace
with finish, end, complete, settle or wrap
up, depending on your point. Change: I will finalize
the report. To: I will finish the report.

fire, fired
Consider using this verb instead of the formal euphemism
terminate or terminated when writing about
someone who's dismissed from a job for poor performance
or breach of ethics. But use lay off or laid
off -- and not downsize or downsized
-- when writing about someone who's been dismissed to cut
costs or for lack of work. See laid off, lay off, layoff; terminate.

firm (n.) A
firm is a business partnership: She rose quickly
within the law firm. Use company or
corporation for an incorporated business entity.

first-
Include a hyphen when used as a part of a compound adjective
modifying a noun: first-class service, first-degree
murder, first-quarter touchdown. Otherwise, use two
words: first line of defense, murder in the first degree,
scored in the first quarter, service that's first
class.

first-come,
first-served Use hyphens when used as a modifier
before a noun: a first-come, first-served policy.
But don't include hyphens after a verb: The policy
was first come, first served. Note the comma after
come and the letter d in served.

fiscal
year The 12-month period that a governmental
body or corporation uses for bookkeeping. Spell out phrases
like the 1999 fiscal year on first reference. For
later references, use fiscal 1999, not fiscal
year 1999. Don't capitalize. Avoid FY 1999.

fish Lowercase
the name of all fish species, such as chinook, coho,
silver, blackmouth and spring. Do not
capitalize salmon or trout when used either
alone or with the species name (such as chinook
salmon or bull trout). However, capitalize the
Latin family name, if you are using it: chinook
Salmonidae). See family, genus, species; species.

flair, flare
Commonly confused. Flair is "a person's
natural ability, conspicuous talent or sense of style."
A flare is "a bright light used as a distress
signal; a flame or burst of unsteady light; an emotional
outburst; and part of something that curves or spreads
outward, as in a skirt." Things can flare up
and flare out.

flammable,
inflammable, inflammatory, nonflammable Sometimes
dangerously confused. Flammable and
inflammable both mean "combustible or burns
very easily." But use less ambiguous flammable
when making a safety warning. Use nonflammable to
mean "will not burn." Inflammatory means
"tending to inflame or excite the senses, or tending to
incite anger or disorder."

flaunt,
flout Commonly confused verbs. To
flaunt is "to show off something vainly."
To flout is "to mock, treat with contempt or
deliberately disobey a rule or law."

flex-time Lowercase and
hyphenate this word used to describe flexible working hours.

flesh out, flush
out Sometimes confused. Use flesh out
to mean "add details, give more substance,
elaborate." Use flush out to mean "reveal
something that's been hidden, force someone out of
hiding, push something into the open." If there's a
chance readers might misunderstand those phrases, use their
definitions instead.

flier, FlyerFlier is the preferred spelling meaning "a
bulletin, handbill, pilot or someone who travels on a
plan": Staff members delivered fliers about the
public meeting.Flyer is a proper name of some
buses and trains.

flounder,
founder Commonly confused verbs. To
flounder is "to struggle with saying or doing
something" and "to struggle awkwardly, as in water,
mud or snow." To founder is "to fail and
collapse" and "to fill with water and sink."

following Usually a noun, verb
or adjective: She has a large following. He is following
his conscience. The committee is considering the following
projects. Also, after is clearer and more
precise as a preposition: He spoke after dinner.
Not: He spoke following dinner.

follow
up (v.), follow-up (n. and
adj.) Did Sasha ever follow up on her idea? We need
to schedule a follow-up. Let's plan a
follow-up session on Sasha's idea.

foot Use
figures and spell out in texts: She jumped 5 feet. The
wall panel is 8 feet long. Use the singular
foot and hyphenate when used as a compound adjective
before a noun: The 4-foot box is heavy.Foot or feet may be abbreviated to
ft. in tables. See dimensions.

footnotes,
endnotes Often confused, misused and overused.
Footnotes go at the foot, or bottom, of pages;
endnotes go at the end of chapters, articles and
books. But avoid using them, except for bibliographic
references or citations. They force readers to look somewhere
else on a page or another page for the information they
contain. That interrupts reading and can cause reader
distraction, confusion and frustration. Instead, try putting
the information in parentheses within the text. If you must
use them, consider footnotes first.

forceful,
forcible Commonly confused or misspelled. The
adjective forceful means "powerful and
strong." The adjective forcible means
"done using (physical) force." The adverbs
forcefully and forcibly have similar
differences in meaning.

forego,
forgo Often confused verbs. To forego
is "to go before." To forgo is "to do
without something for expediency or altruism."

foreign,
international Use foreign to describe
foreign cars, cities, governments, languages, markets,
money, names, products, trade, words and other foreign
people, places and things (not in or from the United States).
Foreign-made (or imported) and
foreign-born are acceptable adjectives. Use
international when writing about activities, groups,
operations, people and relations involving more than one
country.

foreign words and
phrases Before using an unfamiliar foreign word or
phrase, consider the needs and interests of your readers. If
your readers may not understand the words, consider using an
English alternative, defining the foreign words or suggesting
the meaning of the words within the context of your document.

Italicize truly foreign words and phrases the first time
they're used in a document. If they're used again in
the document, use roman (or regular) type. Truly foreign
words and phrases have not become part of the English
language; they're not listed in English dictionaries, or
they're identified as foreign in English dictionaries.
Translations are typically put in quotation marks and set off
with parentheses immediately after the foreign words or
phrases they translate. See accent marks.

Complete sentences or long phrases in a foreign language are
not usually italicized. If they're direct quotations,
place them between quotation marks instead. And again, if
using an untranslated foreign-language statement would
confuse, annoy, frustrate or insult many of your readers--and
make you look foolish, pompous or arrogant--don't use it.

foreword,
forward, preface Commonly confused and misspelled.
Foreword is an introductory statement at the
beginning of a book or other document, usually written by
someone other than a book's author or authors.
Forward means "at or toward the front" or
describes movement toward a point in time or space. A
preface is an introduction usually written by a
book's author. See forward below.

formal
Formal writing, formal language and formal words have their
place, but it's not usually a place where communication
is clear, concise and friendly. Be wary of visiting such a
place when you want others to take the time to read,
understand and even act on the words you write. If you want
to put distance between you and your readers, use formal
writing. It'll surely be cold and uninviting for your
readers and lonely for you. This style and usage manual
suggests simpler alternatives to formal, pompous and
pretentious words and phrases. See simple, simplistic.

former
Always lowercase. But capitalize an official title used
immediately before a name: former Redmond Mayor Wesley
Charles.

former,
latter Avoid forcing your readers to reread
something by using these words. Instead, restate the item. If
you must use these words, they apply to only two things;
former is the first, and latter is the
second. Also see later,
latter.

forte A
forte is "a person's special skill or
strong point" and "the strongest part of a
blade." But simplify and try using strength or
specialty instead. In music, forte means
"loud or loudly." (Pronounce both as
"for-tay," ignoring outdated,
pretentious claims about how to say the word when mentioning
a person's strength.)

fortuitous,
fortunate Sometimes confused. Use fortunate
to mean "lucky." Use fortuitous to mean
"happening by chance or accidental," especially if
the circumstances are positive, "a happy accident."
A fortuitous accident is redundant, and calling a
bad accident fortuitous would confuse people.

fracking The energy industry
uses fracking to extract oil and gas from rock by injecting
high-pressure mixtures of water, sand or gravel and
chemicals. The short form is fracking, a term considered
pejorative by the industry. The industry likes using two
words and six syllables to label this technique:
"hydraulic fracturing."

fractions Spell out amounts
less than one in stories, and hyphenate between the
words: two-thirds,four-fifths. Use
numerals for precise amounts larger than one: 5 2/3, 59
5/8. Whenever practical, convert fractions to decimals:
5.5, 43.5, 8.25.

If using a whole number with a fraction, do not hyphenate:
4 3/8, 15 4/5.

Avoid numerals separated by a slash--5 1/2--when the
typeface has case fractions as special characters, such as
Ã'Â½. The fractions 1/4,
1/2 and 3/4 are usually available as
special characters in word processing and desktop-publishing
programs.

With phrases like three-fourths of X, the verb
agrees with X: Three-fourths of the project is
done. Three-fourths of the visitors are from Andorra.

In charts and tables, always use numerals. Convert to
decimals if the amounts involve extensive use of fractions.
See decimals.

French
dip When preparing the menu for your restaurant,
don't offer French dip au jus or French dip
with au jus. It's redundant. Either phrase is like
offering a house with roof. And since au
means "with" in French, with au jus is
even more redundant. Simply list your tasty French
dip. Also redundant is soup du jour of the day.Soupe du jour means "soup of the day" in
French.

full-
Hyphenate when used to form compound modifiers: A
full-length film. A full-scale attack.

full-time equivalent
Refers to a full-time employment position. Spell out on first
reference. FTE is acceptable on second reference.

full time,
full-time Hyphenate when used as a compound
modifier: He works full time. She has a full-time
job.

fulsome
Commonly misused, as in fulsome praise. Use it to
describe something that's disgusting or offensive,
excessive or insincere, not abundant or very full. If you
need a positive adjective, try full, ample, lavish,
generous or whole-hearted instead. And note:
Fulsome has only one l.

fun In serious
writing, fun is only a noun. It's not an
adjective, so it lacks comparative/superlative forms, as in
funner and funnest or more fun and
most fun. Incorrect: This year's event was
more fun than last year's. Your party was the funnest one
I've been to all year. But as a noun, fun
can be modified with the adjectives more and
most: We had more fun at this year's event
than we did at last year's event. I think I had the most
fun of anyone at the party. In casual, informal
communication, fun is sometimes used as an
adjective: That was a fun thing to do. It's always
funner this time of year. That was the funnest part.

fundamental Overstated.
Simplify. Cut or change to basic, important or
needed.

fundraising,
fundraiser No hyphen or space between
fund and raising. Fundraising for
charity is a good cause. The committee planned the annual
fundraising campaign. The division sponsored a
fundraiser.

gaff, gaffe
Sometimes misspelled and confused nouns. A gaffe is
"an embarrassing mistake, a social blunder." A
gaff is "a strong hook or steel point on
equipment used in fishing and power-line work" and
"a pole or spur attached to the mast on a ship."

Garbl Acronym
for Gary B. Larson,
webmaster for this online style and usage manual and Garbl's Writing Center.
He means "to untangle and clarify misunderstood or
incomprehensible rules and guidelines of grammar, style and
usage." Avoid garbling with the unrelated creator of the
excellent "The Far Side" cartoons. Also see
garble.

Gas
Works Two words when writing about the park on
Lake Union in Seattle.

gay, lesbian
Identify a person's sexual orientation only when it is
relevant. Do not refer to "sexual preference" or to
a gay, homosexual or alternative "lifestyle." Use
gay (n. and adj.) to describe men and women
attracted to the same sex, though lesbian is the
more common term for women. Avoid using homosexual
except in clinical contexts or references to sexual activity.
Instead of referring to lesbians and gays, consider
using gay women and men or lesbians and gay
men. Lowercase gay and lesbian except
in names of organizations. Don't refer to gays with
disparaging, offensive terms. Use gay and
queer carefully in other contexts. Do not use
gay as offensive, incorrect adolescent slang meaning
"stupid." See sex,
sexism.

genderGender has become an acceptable term for writing
about differences between males and females, especially their
social, psychological and cultural traits--or who we are.
Sex is more often used when writing about physical
and biological traits--or what we do. Stay tuned. See
sex, sexism.

general manager
Capitalize as an official title before a name, and lowercase
when standing alone or after a name between periods:
General Manager Ron Burton; Ron Burton, general manager,
said ... See capitalization, titles.

getGet
is good English. It's an acceptable, simpler substitute
for formal words like obtain, receive, become and
procure. And so are its verb forms: got and
gotten: He got a digital camera for his
birthday. I have gotten really tired of pulling morning
glory.

goes without saying, needless to
say Well, what more can I say? Omit needless
words and information. Either phrase may be useful to stress
a common bond with your audience, but think about clearer,
stronger ways to do that. If you still want to make say
something, simplify. Consider using clearly, naturally,
obviously, of course or plainly -- but avoid
insulting your reader by stating the obvious in condescending
ways. And accept that your reader may ignore or question your
words. See clearly
evident.

good
Samaritan Lowercase good unless used in a
title: Good Samaritan Recovery Center.

good,
well As a modifier, good is always an
adjective for writing about the quality of someone or
something, which means it describes nouns and pronouns (or
people, places and things): good English, good guitarist,
a good many. As a modifier, well is usually an
adverb for writing about the way something is done, which
means it describes verbs, adjectives and other adverbs:
to play well, well-paid employee.

Well also can be an adjective but usually when
describing someone's health, as in "not sick":
She is well. When asked the unavoidable question
"How are you?" a reply like "I am well"
refers to your health. But replies using "good" or
"fine" or a similar adjective (or "bad"
or "terrible" or a similar adjective) refer to your
situation, thoughts, feelings and so on. And if the question
is "How are you doing?" a reply like "I'm
doing well" refers to your actions. See bad, badly; well.

Google, Googled,
GooglingGoogle is the trademark for a
Web search engine. Using the trademark symbol -- TM -- is unnecessary unless Google is
named in advertising materials. Always capitalize the name
and the verb forms. Unless use of Google is essential, use a
generic equivalent (lowercased): browser search tool,
searched the Web, Web search engine.

gourmand,
gourmet Sometimes confused nouns. A
gourmand is "a person who really likes good
food and drink but tends to eat and drink too much." A
gourmet is "a person with expert knowledge
about food and drink who appreciates subtle differences in
flavor or quality."

government,
governmental Always lowercase the noun
government, never abbreviate: city government,
state government, the U.S. government. Use
governmental as the adjective: a governmental
agency. Also, lowercase the branches of government:
the legislative, executive and judicial branches of the
federal government.

governmental bodies
Capitalize the full, proper names of federal, state and local
governmental agencies, departments and offices: the U.S.
Department of State, the state Department of Ecology,
Portland Department of Transportation, the county Department
of Adult Detention. Also, capitalize the shortened
version: the State Department, the Ecology Department,
Transportation Department. But lowercase the
department.

governor Capitalize and
abbreviate before a name: Gov. Lowercase after a
name and when standing alone. See titles.

GPA The
abbreviation (capitalized, no periods) for grade-point
average is acceptable in all uses.

grade,
grades Hyphenate both the noun forms
(second-grader, 10th-grader) and the adjective forms
(a second-grade student, a 10th-grade student). But
a student is in the second grade or the 10th
grade. When mentioning letter grades, use B-plus,
C-minus and so forth, not B+ or C-.
Don't enclose grades in quotation marks. Use an
apostrophe with plurals of single letters: straight
A's, all B's and C's.

graduate,
graduated Commonly misused. People graduate
from high school or college, they don't
graduate high school or college. Remember that they
received their diploma from some place; they
graduated from that place.

grammar
Commonly misspelled. Both its vowels are a's.
Don't end with er. Also see spelling.

ground
zero Often misused. Use it to identify the site
of a devastating nuclear bomb blast or the location of the
tragic World Trade Center attack in New York on Sept. 11,
2001. Don't use it to describe the beginning of
something. Instead, use phrases like the beginning,
starting point or start from scratch.